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Emailed Merkur about Merkur HD/Classic head material.

At first they told me the top cap was Zamak, but asked again and this was the reply I received today:

"Hello,

the zamak as basic material is covered by layers of copper, nickel and chrome. Without plating is would corrode quite fast. If the plating is damaged lime and soap will movv underneath."

We all know Merkur has problems with plating QC, I have a couple of Merkur razors where there was some plating flaking off, frankly I haven't worried too much about a bit of plating loss, but can anybody confirm if Zamak or Zamak 3 corrodes really fast without the protective plating over top? If it is a zinc alloy, I wouldn't think it would corrode, but it is confirmed that the heads are not made of plated brass, it's Zamak underneath. But how does bare Zamak hold up to moisture, exposure to water? I'm assuming from the reply I got, possibly the whole razor is Zamak, head, handle, knob, etc. Again a better choice would have been to make the razor out of entirely brass, plated with copper, nickel, then chrome. In the event that that plating wore off, like some vintage Gillettes, at least the brass underneath would hold up pretty good without the plating, I don't think brass would corrode as easily like the metal they are using. I wish Merkur would just up the quality and make the razor out of solid brass, I would be happy to pay an extra $5-10 for each razor, if I knew the build quality and materials were better than what they use now.
 
Biggest problem with Zamak can be the electric interaction between the zinc and the plating material. Due to small electric currents brass (or any other metal in fact) can corrode the zinc which can cause plating loss and, eventually the loss of the product. This has a lot to do with the quality and purification off the the metals as well as the quality of the molding itself.
I don't know whether that process will be speeded up due to water and soap but since this is not pH-neutral I think it just might add to the process.
On the other hand; Merkur is building its razors like that for a really long time now and allthough there are no doubt some QC issues with their razors I haven't seen a pic yet with serious corrosion problems.
 
You might be interested in this poll:

Merkur improvement poll

and this observation about two identical HD's which gave completely different shaves:

For those of you who suggested that it was the razor, you were right. I checked the razor I was using at home (as opposed to the one I enjoyed on the trip.) The blade was being held at a slant, with one corner of each edge protruding about 1-2mm more than the other.

I called the vendor who immediately suggested an exchange, which I will do. I had also ordered a gold plated HD, which I found held the blade straight, but with one edge extended 2mm on one side and 3-4 on the other. I am returning that for exchange as well.

My question is how bad is the QC on Merkur razors? Bad I suspect. The vendor promised he would check head alignment before sending the replacements.

I really like the HD shave. It's a shame it's going to be hard to reproduce it.
 
Well, to see what solid brass with heavy chrome plate razors are going for, RasurPur sells them here: http://www.rasurpur.de/english/shop/derazors/derazors.htmlThe "Sheffield" is gorgeous, but will set you back 99Eur, about $141! They have a "1904" Gillette look-alike a lot cheaper, but even that will cost 29Eur, about $41. So if you yearn for a solid brass modern razor, they are available if you think they are worth the bucks!

And check out the gorgeous TI's and LeGrelot's they have! And you can have one if you want to tke out a second mortgage!:frown:
 
Well, to see what solid brass with heavy chrome plate razors are going for, RasurPur sells them here: http://www.rasurpur.de/english/shop/derazors/derazors.htmlThe "Sheffield" is gorgeous, but will set you back 99Eur, about $141! They have a "1904" Gillette look-alike a lot cheaper, but even that will cost 29Eur, about $41. So if you yearn for a solid brass modern razor, they are available if you think they are worth the bucks!

And check out the gorgeous TI's and LeGrelot's they have! And you can have one if you want to tke out a second mortgage!:frown:

No. I just want a well-made Merkur.
 
Another response to one of my questions from Merkur:

"Hello,

zamak comimg out from pressure casting form a nearly ready article. Just fine grinding and polishing before plating.
Brass is not usable fro pressure casting. The toleranzes from molding are much higher. You have to invest more work to get the same result.
Brass also corrodes. It gets black and green spots. The protection against corrosion is the same as zamak.

There are several questions about the material in the last weeks. Just to say it clearly: concerning razors, brass is no better material compared to zamak."
 
Another response to one of my questions from Merkur:

"Hello,

zamak comimg out from pressure casting form a nearly ready article. Just fine grinding and polishing before plating.
Brass is not usable fro pressure casting. The toleranzes from molding are much higher. You have to invest more work to get the same result.
Brass also corrodes. It gets black and green spots. The protection against corrosion is the same as zamak.

There are several questions about the material in the last weeks. Just to say it clearly: concerning razors, brass is no better material compared to zamak."

Intersesing perspective. But I think you should ask this person why their QC is so poor, regarding my above experience with poor blade positioning in the heads.
 
I find whenever I load a TTO Merk, I spend a good while making sure the blade's aligned correctly. I think it'd be relatively easy to load the blade badly without thinking about it. Just a tiny shift can make the difference, to me anyway. I started paying close attention after getting a slant and now do it with them all. I believe Merkur about the physics of the materials, but would prefer a solid brass one. Loving the look of the rasurpur DEs
 
On the other hand; Merkur is building its razors like that for a really long time now and allthough there are no doubt some QC issues with their razors I haven't seen a pic yet with serious corrosion problems.

Exactly my thought. Also, brass is a composite material as well, ie. it's an allow, a mix of other metals just like zamac is. There's no reason to think that brass is any more "pure" or better than zamac when it comes to the manufacture of razors.

For what it's worth: I have a couple of old Gillette (and other makes of razor) that are brass plated with either silver or gold or copper and I have seen corrosion of the brass. Pitting and corrosion can and does happen to brass razors. I had a Gillette NEW that had corroded teeth on the comb.

And don't forget that Merkur has a lifetime guarantee. If your razor ever corrodes, they'll replace it with no questions asked. I don't think that Gillette ever offered that type of guarantee on their brass plated razors.
 
I think the brass corrodes when it comes in contact with some kind of acid like vinegar, lemon juice, high level of exposure to salt water, etc... I would think that contact with regular tap water would be fine. I have a lot of Gillettes, some with brassing and the brass looks okay to me. I only have one 1932 tech, where the edge of the bottom of the razor plate has some corrosion, looks like again came in contact with some acid.
 
I think the brass corrodes when it comes in contact with some kind of acid like vinegar, lemon juice, high level of exposure to salt water, etc... I would think that contact with regular tap water would be fine. I have a lot of Gillettes, some with brassing and the brass looks okay to me. I only have one 1932 tech, where the edge of the bottom of the razor plate has some corrosion, looks like again came in contact with some acid.

Could be, about the acid idea, I wouldn't know, but I do know that I've got pitting and corrosion in a couple of old open combs, I've got pitting in a couple of superspeeds from the 1950's and 60's. And so all I know is that brass does corrode.

Now, the fact is that a bit of pitting and some corrosion on a razor that's close to 50 years old, and in a couple of cases on razors from the 1930's is pretty darn good.

So don't get me wrong, I'm a real fan of brass. I love brass and if all my razors were made of brass I'd be just delighted. I wouldn't even want most of them them plated, I've got a brass New that looks like new, and I wish I had more choice of just brass razors, and I'd be plenty happy to watch them oxidize to that beautiful patina that brass gets. I am seriously contemplating stripping the plating off one of my fatboys because I would like to have it in just brass without the plating.

But all that having been said, I woulnd't necessarily jump to the conclusion that zamac isn't just as good as brass for a razor that's plated. And take a look at Merkur's reply: it's plated in copper, nickel and chrome. Gillette didn't do that much plating and from what I can gather, the chrome plate is much better than the nickel. It's harder, it doesn't tarnish and so it remains shiny without polishing. If you want to keep a nickel razor shiny, you'll polish it until the nickel plating just wears right off, you don't have to do that with chrome, it will just continue to shine.
 
Well, to see what solid brass with heavy chrome plate razors are going for, RasurPur sells them here: http://www.rasurpur.de/english/shop/derazors/derazors.htmlThe "Sheffield" is gorgeous, but will set you back 99Eur, about $141! They have a "1904" Gillette look-alike a lot cheaper, but even that will cost 29Eur, about $41. So if you yearn for a solid brass modern razor, they are available if you think they are worth the bucks!

The 99 euro type has written edwin jagger all over it; their heads come from merkur so their you have Zamak again..The 1904 models are the merkur 41 & 42 type; Zamak heads. This shop overcharges a lot on these razors as they should come under 20 euro's. The nice Mühle box can be bought (with a Mühle razor) for just over 30 euro's...
No solid brass on this page no matter what the guy claims!
 
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